I really liked your old "magazine" style cover/illustrations. Its just too bad you can't find one general place for those illustrations. They were colorful and cool.

John

Great article on Malta! (Jim Ryan, July 2008)I've had this romantic fantasy of ending up in Malta someday, having spent just a short time there a few years ago. I have met natural born Maltese citizens during my travels but I have never encountered anyone who has actually lived through the process of picking up and relocating to Malta. I loved every minute that I was there but like anything, visiting is very different from relocating. You confirmed a lot of my suspicions and answered many questions in a very honest and respectful way. Those little things that make us feel silly to complain about, actually do count. You just don't think that they do when you are experiencing it temporarily on holiday vs. being inconvenienced on a daily basis. I get it. It's about really changing your entire life if you go for it. But trial and error is not always pretty! Thank you for sharing your experience. I really got a lot out of reading your article and really appreciate your candor and still hear the affect ion you have for Malta in spite of the little "kinks" you have to work out. Enjoy every day at the limestone beaches and azure waters while you're there for how ever long that may be.

Carla

Dear Sirs: Thanks for the great article about Isla de Margarita, Venezuela. I have lived there twice in the 90´s. I just want to add from my own personal experience: * Do not think a "safe" in your hotel room is SAFE... double keys may exist... I lost exactly U$D1.000,00. No proof, no evidence..- * After I also lost my VISA credit card my banks in Sweden issued new ones and mailed them to my Porlamar address. However, no one, NADA, ever arrived, had to cancel them all... Only DHL, FedEX may be able to deliver... * I never received any mail from my home country of Sweden - either. So I sat right down and wrote myself a letter, posted it in the mailbox in the lobby of the famous Hilton Hotel and waited... I´m still waiting! * So I went to the main post office in order to complain... The boss told me that the "cartero" (postman) in my district was "tired" and showed me a mountain of letters, stockpiled more than one meter high on the floor... Sounds incredible, but unfortunately true. I searched thru the pile together with my wife, and finally I found one letter to me from a friend in Gothenburg! But no credit cards... How bad can it be? Buena suerte! Good Luck! Best regards,

Mike Wallen

How amazing to find an article on the realities of moving to Malta! My husband and I are in the process of considering a move there...with my elderly dad. The article couldn't have been more timely. While I grew up in Naples, Italy and thus may have an easier time acclimatizing to the "Maltese Way" than the author, I will share this with my husband (who is very "American") and my dad and his wife (also an unlikely candidate for change). Great food for thought. Articles like this are what make this an excellent forum for discussion. Whether or not we agree with all points of view, most people you run into don't even know where Malta is, let alone are able to discuss the merits of moving there!

Nancy Whitney-Reiter